Not too long ago
by RebelSeeker01
Summary: Not too long ago, there was a crash just outside the city of Roswell. It aroused every one’s attention and started the people thinking, ‘Are we really alone in the universe?’ These people would find out in the not too distant future, the truth that they p
1. Chapter 1

Not too long ago

By Imogin2 of the xsorbit4 rebelfic board.

Disclaimer: I take no credit in this story it was created by Imogin2, who does not own Roswell.

Not too long ago, there was a crash just outside the city of Roswell. It aroused every one's attention and started the people thinking, 'Are we really alone in the universe?' These people would find out in the not too distant future, the truth that they pondered.

1991

I'm sitting in a corner that I've claimed as my own. It's cold and drafty in this room where they've put me. There are other kids running around, but non-of them welcome me to play in their games. 'Who cares about their stupid games anyway.' I tell myself, trying not to be jealous of their joy. My social worker says she found me out in the desert in New Mexico. They brought me to a 'group home' as they say it, in Phoenix,. I call it a prison for kids who aren't loved. It's our little jail where grown-ups lock us up so they don't have to see us and feel sorry for us. I went through three foster homes before landing back here. My first foster home wasn't too bad. There was a mother, father, and two boys who were older than I was. That's where I learned to defend myself. The boys often horsed around with me and I had to learn how to fend them off so they wouldn't hurt me. They fed and clothed me as if I was their own, but I never felt like I belonged. The second home wasn't that bad either. Again there was a mother and father. But instead of two boys, there were two girls younger than me and a boy older than me. I often played with him, his name was Jacob. The third home was the worst. The mother hated me and the father abused me. There was a boy and a girl at that house. Both of them tormented me to the point of insanity. Eventually, I ran away. The authorities found me a few days later in a dark alley in downtown Santa Fe. So here I am, back at where I started, in my jail.

"Tess, come here please." Says my social worker, whose name is Katie. I get up and slowly walk over to where she's standing. She guides me to an office where two people sit in front of a desk. They turn around to look at me and their eyes widen. I shrink back and try to hide behind Katie, but she pushes me forward. "This is Charlie and Sandy Madras. They would like to talk to you and get to know you. Go on, say hello." Katie nudges me forward again. I stare blankly at them, trying not to show any emotion. I know what their goal is. They want to adopt me, to call me their own. I hate the idea. I hate the way people think they can take kids and place them in a home and think that the kid will love it. Kids have feelings too, and most of the time, adults never think about the child's feelings.

"Hi." Is all I say to them. They look at me with excitement in their eyes.

"Hello Tess. I'm Charlie. And this is my wife, Sandy." The man says to me. I don't move.

"How old are you, Tess?" The lady asks me.

"I'm 7 years old."

"Oh. That's a great age! Have you started school yet?" The lady asks, trying to start a conversation.

"Yes." I hate talking to strangers. The lady's eyes dampen when that's all that comes out of my mouth. She whispers something in her husband's ear and then turns to Katie. 

"She's perfect." The lady says. Katie smiles and shakes her hand.

"Great. We'll get her stuff ready right away." Katie turns to me. "Tess, these people are going to adopt you. They're going to be your new parents. You'll have a family now. No more foster homes. Aren't you excited?"

I'm angry beyond my belief! How could they just give me up to these strangers whom I've just met? It's like I have no opinion what so ever for where I want to live. I give a disgusted look on my face and walk out of the room and into my room to pack.

I'm sitting in the back seat of the van, looking out the window at the barren desert. Turns out Charlie and Sandy have kids of their own. Right next to me sits Kevin, who is two years younger than me. He had tried talking to me in the beginning, but I never answered any of his questions. Eventually, he gave up and went back to colouring in his colouring book. In front of me in the middle seat, there is a baby girl, Meghan, who is sitting in a car seat. She's about 1 and a half years old. I think she's cute.

I long to know where we're going, but I'm too stubborn to speak. Charlie and Sandy are chatting away in the front about their new house. Then Sandy turns around and looks at me.

"You want to know where we're going?" She asks me. I don't say a word, but she knows that I do. "We just moved into a house in Roswell. It's a nice big house with a big back yard. Kevin, why don't you tell Tess about the house?"

Kevin gives a pained look as if it's a torture to talk to me. But he doesn't argue. "It's a big blue house, you'll know when you see it. Our bedrooms are upstairs on the second floor. Mom and dad sleep on the main floor and so does Meg. I think you'll like it." He started to get excited as he tells me more. "We moved in just a couple of weeks ago. I don't know anyone in Roswell, so we'll have to play together a lot." He waits for a response from me but only sees my interested look, so he continues. "There's a park right near our house, so we can go play there lots. We'll probably have to bring Meg along with us, but there's lots of baby stuff there too." I start to get excited. The way he explains it makes this place sound so much better than any other place I've ever been.

"Hey, look out the windows! We're in Roswell." Charlie exclaims and we look outside. After a while of driving around, we turn into a quiet area of the city. Here there are lots of old fashion-looking houses. We drive down a few blocks and then turn into a driveway. We come to a complete stop and start climbing out. When I look up, I see a big blue house. 'Home' I say to myself.

"Come on! I'll show you to your room!" Kevin yells and we run into the house. Inside, there are still a few moving-boxes spread out all over. We run upstairs and turn the corner. "This one is mine." Kevin tells me and we walk inside his room. The walls are black with stars and planets plastered on. "I love stars. This summer I'm going to space camp! Come on, I'll show you your room!" He grabs my hand and we run to a room that's across from his. The walls are painted a light yellow quilt mural, which I think is beautiful. It feels so warm and welcoming, the most welcoming room I've ever been in. "So. Do you like it? Look over here, this is your bed. And this is your dresser. Over here are some toys we bought you last week." Kevin ran around the room showing me everything there is to be seen. I walk over to the bed and gently sit down. The blanket is yellow, just like the walls. From the corner of my eye I notice Sandy standing in the doorframe watching me. I look at her and smile.

"Thank you. I love it." I thank her politely. I'm rather speechless as I look around the room in awe. Sandy walks in and opens the closet door. Hanging up in the closet is three dresses.

"I bought these for you two weeks ago. I wasn't sure what size you were, so I only bought three. It's okay if they don't fit. We can bring them back and buy you different ones. Don't worry if you don't like them, just tell me." Sandy tells me. I can tell she's hoping I'll be pleased with her choice. I stand up and walk over to the closet to get a closer look. One dress stands out to me and I ask her to take it down so I can look at it. I'm not one for dresses, but once in a while I might find one that I like. This dress had big sunflowers imprinted all over. The overall colour of the dress was an off white. "Oh. This goes with that dress." Sandy handed me a sun hat that matched the dress perfectly. It reminded me of those picture perfect little girls on commercials when they are swinging on a swing and having the time of their life. I'd always wanted to be like one of those girls. Maybe I could get one step closer with this dress. I look at it, falling in love with the dress instantly. Sandy breaks the silence. "Well, we should start unpacking all your stuff. What do you say?"

"Sure. But I don't have that much. Only this suitcase." I say, feeling embarrassed by how little I have of my own. 

"That won't be a problem. We're going to go shopping for everything you need tomorrow." Sandy replies. I feel a bit better.

It's been a week and a busy one at that. The day after we arrived, Sandy, Kevin, Meghan, and I all went shopping. Sandy bought me 5 pairs of pants, 7 t-shirts, 10 pairs of underwear, and 3 more dresses. The best part about it all was that I got to pick every thing myself. Poor Kevin, he had to stand around all day in the girl's section waiting for me to pick out my clothes. I knew he only came to get out of the house, so I didn't feel too bad for him. He played with Meghan most of the time anyway. The next couple of days I spent going to the doctor and dentist for check-ups, and visiting all of Charlie and Sandy's friends. Yesterday, we all went to the mall to buy school supplies for the new school year. School starts next week.


	2. Chapter 2

Today we're all going out for supper to the Parker's house. I've never been to their house, but apparently they own the Crashdown. Sandy says they have a girl exactly my age, her name is Elizabeth. I'm hoping I'll have fun there. Right now, Sandy is trying to change Meghan's diaper and Charlie is chasing Kevin into his room so he'll get ready. I'm sitting on the couch watching TV. I'm always ready before every one else. Today, I'm wearing my sunflower dress, which I'm still deeply in love with. Finally the family is ready and we get into the van and drive off.

We pull into a little driveway that sits right next to the Crashdown Café. Charlie knocks on the door and a lady opens it. She has dark brown hair that hangs down her shoulders. She smiles and gives Charlie a hug. She turns to Sandy and gives her a hug too. 

"It's been too long! I'm so glad you were able to make it. Come on in." The lady welcomes us in. We walk into the small lobby and take off our shoes. She leads us down a hall way and into living room. "Make your selves at home. Supper will be ready in a minute. I'll go get George and Liz." We slowly walk into the living room and sit down on the couch. A few minutes later, a tall man walks in with a girl about my age holding his hand. 

"Charlie! So good to see you!" The man says as he shakes Charlie's hand. Sandy gets up and shakes the man's hand as well.

"George, you remember Kevin, right?" Charlie says, holding hand towards Kevin. George nods head. "This is Meghan. And over here, this is our newest addition to the family. This is Tess." He puts his hands on my shoulders and gives a proud smile. I can't help but blush. All Charlie and Sandy have been doing is telling people about me. They're so proud that they have me as their daughter. I'm starting to get used to the fact that I'm truly apart of their family now.

"Hello Tess. Charlie's told me so much about you over the phone. This is Liz. She's just your age." George tells me and nudges his daughter forward as if telling her to say hi.

"Hi. You wanna come up to my room to play?" Liz asks me. I give her a nod and she leads me up some stairs. In her room, we play with some Barbie's. "I'll be Stacey and you can be Ken." She tells me. I want to protest to being a man, but don't bother. I pick up the male Barbie doll and find some clothes to put on him. Liz is concentrating on brushing Stacey's hair. I think to myself. 'That's what it's all about, isn't it? You never really play with Barbie's, you just brush their hair.'

"Do you have any other girl Barbie's?" I ask her.

"Yup. They're in here." Liz opens up a box and dumps out a bunch of Barbie's. I pick a hawaii doll which is wearing a hula skirt and pink bikini top. Then I start brushing her hair. It's impossible to get the brush through her hair. I start thinking, 'this is ridiculous! I don't need to brush her hair with useless thing.' Liz isn't looking, so I slide my hand over the hair and instantly, it becomes shiny and tangless. Liz looks over at my doll just after I've finished 'brushing' her hair and her eyes open wide. "How did you get her hair so nice? I could never get through her hair!" She says in amazement.

"I'm just good at brushing hair." I say, covering up my real story. Suddenly, we hear Liz's mom calling us to dinner. We drop our dolls and run downstairs. We sit down side by side and wait for the grown ups to sit down. After we've all sit down, George says grace. Then we start passing around the food. I take a drumstick, a spoon full of corn and peas, and some mashed potatoes. It looks so much better than Sandy's home cooked food. I dig in as if I haven't eaten in days.

After supper, Liz, Kevin, and I excuse ourselves from the table and decide to go outside to play in the park.

"What do you want to do?" Liz asks me.

"Let's go on the monkey bars." I say and we all run towards the jungle gym. Liz and I are fast climbers, so we leave Kevin down at the bottom. We stop at the top and sit down for a while, exhausted. Liz looks around and then asks me a question.

"Tess, do you want to come over tomorrow?" I look at her with a surprised expression on my face. I've never been invited over to someone's house before, so it's a very big shock. I reply.

"Sure! I just have to ask Sandy."

"Why don't you call her 'Mom'?" Liz asks me.

"Because she's not my real mom. I just live with her." I answer.

"But she adopted you. That means that she's your mom."

"What, does every adopted kid call their the people who adopted them Mom and Dad?" I asked, rather offended by her remark.

"Well yeah." She says.

"Like who?"

"There's these two kids in my class who are adopted and they call they're parents Mom and Dad." She tells me. I give up. I know she's right. I'm just too proud to call Charlie and Sandy Dad and Mom. I try to change the subject by climbing down the jungle gym and running over to the swings. There, we all swing for a while before we head back.

When we get back, I go up to Sandy and ask her, "Sandy, can I please come to Liz's house to play tomorrow?" She smiles, pleased that I've made a friend so quickly.

"Of course. I'll drive you over tomorrow at 10 in the morning. Is that alright with you?" She asks me. I nod my head in agreement. Liz, who was just talking to her mom, comes towards me and tells me she has permission. Kevin taps me on my shoulder to get my attention.

"What about me? Who am I going to play with?" He asks me in a whiny voice.

"You can play by yourself. You've played by yourself before, what's so weird about tomorrow? Don't such be a wimp." I tell him. He turns angry and runs to Sandy crying.

"Mommy! Tess called me a wimp!" He cries to her. Sandy picks him up and comforts him. 'He's such a spoiled brat' I think. 'He needs someone to toughen him up and it might as well be me'. Then Sandy walks towards me.

"Tess, did you call your brother a wimp?" She asks, disappointed at me.

"Yes. But he's not my brother." I say. She bends down to my eye level and talks to me in a quiet voice so the others won't hear her.

"You know it's not right to call other kids names. That's rude. We'll talk about this when we get home." She stands up. "I think we should be heading home now. Sorry to cut this short, but the kids are tired and they best be getting to bed." She apologizes to the Parker's and then grabs my arm and walks me to the van. I struggle to get free, but it's no use. She's got firm grip and there's no way I can get loose. I'm dreading what waits for me when I get home.

At home, I wait in my bedroom for Sandy to come and lecture me about how rude and horrible I am. I'm afraid she'll tell me that I'll have to go back to 'jail'. I've started to like it here with these people and I'd hate to go back to that prison. She walks in and sits on my bed where I wait for her.

"Tess, what you did today was not very nice. But I'm not going to punish you." She tells me. I'm puzzled by her decision.

"Why?" I ask her.

"Well, because everyone makes mistakes and I'm sure you didn't mean for Kevin to take what you called him personally. Right?"

"Yeah. I didn't mean to hurt his feelings. It's just that he was being a baby about me playing with Liz."

"I know. He's just excited about having a new big sister and I think he just wants to play with you."

"But….. I'm not his sister." I say. How many times do I have to tell her to get it into her head?

"Tess, do you know what it means to be adopted?" Sandy asks me.

"Yeah. It means you want to be my mom."

"Right. When we signed those adoption papers, that was a way of saying that you have been born into our family. Before, you had no family. You were all alone, but now you're not. You have a family who loves you. Charlie and I are your parents. We'll take care of you until the day you die. Tess…. you never have to worry about being alone again. I will never let you go through that again… I love you Tess." Sandy started choking up and sniffing. I've never heard those words before in my life and they're breaking my heart. I turn my eyes to the floor to avoid her eyes. I know that if I look at her, I'll break down and start crying. I can't take it anymore. I'm only a child, how can I live without love and affection. I look up at her face and my lips start to quiver. A single tear slides down my cheek and she wipes it away. Then I give way to all my emotions. I start shaking as I cry my heart out. "Sshhh. It's okay. It's okay Tess. I'm here for you." Sandy holds me and comforts me. It's the first time anyone has ever held me with such love and affection before and it is the best feeling I've ever had.

"All I've ever wanted is a mommy. I was so lonely before you came. I want you to be my mommy. I want you to love me and I want to love you. Please, don't ever let me go back to that jail. I'm so scared!" I cry into her arms. She cries with me, feeling my pain. She gives me more comforting words, telling me my mommy's here and holds me until I cry myself to sleep in her arms.


	3. Chapter 3

"Kevin! Kevin get down here right now!" Sandy yells up the stairs. It's the first day of school and as usual, things are very hectic. Sandy is never able to get ready on time. But, as usual, I'm relaxing on the couch watching TV. This morning, I got up at 6 in the morning so I could be ready early. Kevin comes running into the living room and jumps right on top of me.

"Hey! Don't do that! Get off of me!" I fight him off and pin him to the floor. I smile at my easy accomplishment and he starts to pout. He hates it when I beat him at anything. I get up and dust myself off. "Don't you have to go do something?" I ask, trying to get him to leave. 

"No. Mom's the one who's late." He tells me. I look over to the doorway and see Sandy getting her shoes on.

"Come on. Let's get in the van." I say and we run to the door.

"Hey, no running inside. Tess, can you put your sister in the car seat? Thanks" Sandy gives me Meghan and I carry her to the van. Sandy comes almost right away and we speed down the highway. It takes five minutes to get to the school. I'm feeling disappointed because my friend Liz doesn't go to my school.

"Sandy." I say, trying to get her attention.

"Yes Tess?" She answers.

"Why can't I go to Liz's school?" I ask, knowing the answer already. She's told me many times already why I can't go to Liz's school.

"Tess. We don't have to discuss this anymore. You know that her school is on the other side of the city. That's too far to travel every day. You go to East Roswell Elementary and you're not changing that. I'm sorry, but that's the way it has to be." I can tell she's fed up with telling me that over and over again. 

We get to the school and walk Kevin to his class first. This is his first day ever, since he's in kindergarten. We bid farewell to him and then start on our way to my class. My classroom isn't too far away and we arrive very quickly. Inside, there are about 20 other kids scattered through out the room. There's a teacher sitting at the desk, so we walk over to her.

"Excuse me. Um, are you Ms. Plett?" Sandy asks politely.

"Yes. Oh, you must be Sandy Madras. And you must be Tess." The lady looks at me and gives me a sweet smile. I like her already. "Okay, um. Here, this is your desk. You can put all your stuff inside. When class starts, I'll introduce you to everyone. Is that okay with you?" She asks me. I'm surprised that she's asked for my permission. I nod my head and then go to my desk. Sandy follows me and kneels down to my height. She sets down Meghan on the floor.

"Okay Tess. This is it. Do you need anything before I go?" She asks me, looking very concerned about my happiness.

"I'm fine Sandy." I say and then sigh with nervousness. She gives me a hug and tells me she loves me. "I love you too. Good bye." I say. The bell rings and every one runs to their seats. After the morning exercises, Ms. Plett walks to the front of the class and starts to introduce me.

"Okay class. I hope you all had a great summer!" She says enthusiastically. "Today, we have a new student. Her name is Tess. Tess, would you like to come up here?" She motions for me to go up to the front. Reluctantly, I get up and obey her. "Tess, would you like to tell us where you came from?"

"I used to live in Phoenix, and then I moved here with my family."

"That's interesting. What was it like living there?" She asks, trying to get more information out of me.

"I hate Phoenix. Roswell's better." I say. Ms. Plett notices that I don't appreciate being up here and says I can go sit down. She goes on to talk about what we'll be learning this year. 

At the first recess, I go over to the sandbox and start building a sand castle. There are some other girls in the other corner playing with some toy trucks. One of them comes over to me.

"Hi, my name is Ally. Do you want to come play with us?" She asks me. My eyes light up at the invitation and I follow her to the other side. The other girls say hi and then give me a truck to play with. All recess we focus ourselves on building the biggest hill in all the sandboxes. In the end, we succeed. When we go back in after recess, they're all in my class. I'm glad because at least I know a few girls now.

When school ends, I walk over to the kindergarten room and get Kevin. He's telling me all about his day while we walk outside to wait for Sandy. We stand in front of the school for about five minutes before Sandy arrives. She's late, but I don't care.

It's been a few weeks since I started school and I've made a few friends. Although I see Ally everyday, Liz is still my best friend. I've been over to her house seven times already and I'm going again in a few minutes. We're having a sleep over. She told me last night on the phone that her friend Maria will be there for a while with us. I'm fine with it, just another friend to add to my list. Sandy's ready to go and we leave in the van. Kevin was sulking again as we left the house. He hates it when I leave to go play with someone else. He's such a spoiled brat.

We arrive at the Parker's and I run up to the door. Liz answers the door and pulls me inside. We run upstairs to her room where her friend Maria waits for us. I walk in and see her sitting on the floor listening to some music.

"Maria, this is Tess. Tess, this is Maria." Liz introduces us. Maria looks at me and smiles.

"Hi! Liz talks about you all the time at school. What's it like going to East Roswell Elementary? I heard that school really sucks." Maria asks me rather bluntly. I smirk at the comment and respond.

"It's okay. I like it. Why? What's it like at your school?"

"Our school is cool! We got the best teachers ever!" Brags Maria.

"Yeah, well I'm happy where I go. Um, do you know Ally?" I ask, wondering if they know my friend.

"Ally? You mean Ally the richest girl in Roswell? I wish!" Maria responded. My eyes widen when she says that Ally is the richest girl in town. I could have never guessed! "Why? Do you know her?" Maria asks me hopefully.

"Yeah. I play with her at school all the time." I say as if it's not a big deal. Her mouth opens in surprise. "Maria, it's not a big deal. She's not any different than us. She just has a lot of money is all." I try to shrug off the subject. "Liz, can we go downstairs to your restaurant tomorrow morning? I'm supposed to pick up some asteroid pie for my mom."

"Sure. Hey, you guys want to watch a movie?" We nod our heads in excitement and rush downstairs. We look in their video case for a good movie to watch.

"How bout E.T?" I suggest. We've been looking for a while and haven't found anything good so they agree. We make ourselves comfortable on the couch and pop in the movie. Through out the entire movie, I can hear Liz and Maria whispering to each other. I know that they're bored of the movie, but I don't say anything. This is my favorite movie in the whole world and I'm not going to let those two ruin it for me. When the movie ends, Maria jumps up in a panic.

"Oh no! I'm late!" She exclaims.

"What do you mean?" I ask her.

"I was supposed to be home half an hour ago. My mom's gonna kill me! I gotta go." She says and runs out the room. Liz and I look at each other and break out laughing.


	4. Chapter 4

It's the next morning now, and Liz and I are in the Crashdown having breakfast. I'm having their famous pancakes with tobasco sauce on top and Liz is having waffles. I look over to the entrance and see a family of four walk in and sit down in a booth across from us. I've never seen the two kids before, but I feel a vague sense of familiarity with them.

"Liz, who are those two over there?" I ask, pointing to the boy and girl sitting with their parents.

"Them? Oh, that's Max and Isabel Evans. They're in my class." She tells me.

"They're twins?" I ask.

"Yeah, but they look nothing like each other. I don't get it."

"Do you know them?" I ask.

"No, not really. Isabel is kind of a snob and Max is really quiet. They don't really have any friends. That is, except for Michael Guerin." Liz informs me. "Why, do you know them?"

"Oh, uh no. Well… maybe I do. I don't know. I feel like I know them but I've never seen them before." I say, all mixed up.

"Well go up to them. Say hi and see if they know you." Liz says. I'm reluctant to the idea, but decide to go for it. What's to loose if I make a fool of myself? I get up and walk up to the family.

"Excuse me. Do I know you two?" I ask politely, looking at the twins. They looked at me, surprised. They excuse themselves from the table and we all walk to a corner of the restaurant. I ask them again. "Have we ever met before? I feel like I know you."

"You're her. You're the one we left behind." The boy, Max, tells me.

"What? What are you talking about?" I ask, completely confused by what he said. The girl looks at me with longing eyes.

"You're the fourth. Don't you remember when you first came out of the pod? We left you there and were found by some people from Roswell. Remember?" She tells me. I start to get flashbacks of when I first came out of my pod. 'I was all alone and so cold. I knew there were others, I just couldn't find them. They'd left me to find a home.' I phase back to reality.

"I remember. You guys left me. You left me to find homes for yourselves. Why didn't you wait for me?" I ask, hurt by what they did to me. They turned their eyes to the floor, embarrassed by what they had done.

"We didn't mean to leave you. We thought you'd come and find us." The girl says.

"And you did. You're here now, you found us. We're all together again." Max says. I look around for the other boy that was supposed to be with us.

"Where is he? Where's the other one?" I ask.

"He's at his house. He's a foster kid. Are you adopted?" Max asks me. I nod yes. "Well we better get back to the table before mom and dad start asking questions."

"Wait. When will I see you again?" I ask.

"Why don't you come over tonight and we can talk then." The girl answers. Then they turn to leave. I grab the girls arm quickly. "What's your name?" I want to know.

"It's Isabel. Bye." She smiles at me and then walks towards her parents. I'm filled with satisfaction and return to Liz.

"What was that all about?" Liz asks me curiously.

"Oh nothing. I knew them a while ago. We're getting together tonight." I answer and we go back to our conversation about how Liz thinks it's gross that I put tobasco sauce on everything.

-

-

-

I press the doorbell and a woman answers the door.

"Hello. Can I help you?" She asks me.

"Hi. I'm Tess Madras, Max and Isabel's friend." I introduce myself.

"Oh, right. Come in. I'll tell the kids." She opens the door and leads me into the lobby. She yells upstairs for Max and Isabel to come down. They come running down the stairs.

"Hi Tess! Come on." Max takes my hand and leads me up the stairs and into his room. When I enter the room, I see a boy sitting on the floor. He must be the fourth. "Tess, this is Michael." Max introduces us. Michael gets up and walks towards me. We look at each other for a moment and then embrace each other in a warm, welcoming hug. I knew him right away when I first saw him. He's my brother. We all sit down in a circle.

"So when did you move to Roswell?" Isabel started.

"About a month ago. I was adopted back in Phoenix and then my family moved here." I respond.

"You have a family? What's it like?" Michael asks curiously.

"Well… let me think. At first I hated them. But that was because I was too proud to admit that I needed them. I have a younger brother and a younger sister. My brother's name is Kevin and my sister's name is Meghan. What about you two? Do you guys have any other siblings?" I look at Max and Isabel.

"No. Our parents aren't able to have children. That's why they adopted us." Isabel answers.

"And you? Where are you living?" I ask Michael. He puts his head down as if he's ashamed.

"I live in the trailer park just outside of Roswell with my foster mom and dad and foster sister." He answers quietly.

"I wonder if my parents could adopt you." I say out loud. Michael's head jerks in my direction.

"Why would they adopt ME?" He asks. I give him a 'Duh!' look.

"Because you're my brother, that's why. I'm going to tell my parents that you're my brother and then they'll adopt you." I answer. It's as simple as that. Max give me a doubtful look.

"Yeah, but what if they don't want to. They already have three kids. What makes you think that they'll agree to the adoption?" Max asks. 

"Don't worry. I'll make sure they do. I'll just mind-warp them." I say.

"What's mind-warping?" Isabel asks.

"That's where I take over a person's mind and make them do things. I can put the idea of adopting Michael in my parent's minds and they'll do it. Don't you have that power?"

"No. But I can heal people. And Isabel can dream-walk people and Michael can destroy things. I guess we all have our own powers." Max says. I lean back against the bed and think about how I'll mind-warp Sandy and Charlie.

1 month later

"Okay, that's the end of it. Michael, you're ours now!" Sandy exclaims with joy. We've waited a month for this moment and now it's finally here. Michael is now my brother legally! Kevin's jumping ecstatically because he's so happy to have a big brother. Michael just stands still beside me, not showing much emotion. I know that inside, he's jumping for joy too. Sandy can tell that he's my brother, he's hard to open up. I tell her in my mind, 'Don't worry, he'll open up. He just needs time. Just like I did.' 

We're at home now and I'm showing Michael his new room. He walks into his room with the same look I had on when I first arrived in this house. I give a smile when I see him sit on his bed with satisfaction. I've worked on his room for a while now, making everything perfect. All it needed was my brother. Now it's perfect. My brother is home.

That evening, after everyone is asleep, I sneak into Michael's room. He's lying there on his bed, eyes wide open. His head jerks towards me when I open the door. I can tell he's a bit scared. I walk over to him and sit down right next to him. He keeps his face strait and I do too.

"How are you?" I ask quietly. 

"Okay. What's wrong?" Michael asks me, not really knowing why I'm in his room.

"Nothing. I just thought you'd want some company. Can I lie down with you?" I ask him. He nods and I can tell he's happy I'm here. He lifts up the covers and welcomes me underneath the blanket. I snuggle up close to him and smile, making his eyes glow with happiness. Though he doesn't show it, I know he's glad I'm here with him. We lie in the darkness, holding each other safely in our arms. It's one of those special moments that I'll never forget. It's a moment when I know I'm with my true family.

The next day

Right now it's recess and Michael and I are in a small corner of the playground. Michael wasn't too happy about changing schools but it's not like he really had a choice. Max and Isabel were sad to see him leave their class, but at least they still have each other. I'm just thankful I have my brother now. I don't always have to pretend to be such a human with those girls anymore. Michael and I are so alike in so many ways. The way we eat, we both pick at the food before we put it in our mouth. Everything has to be inspected, perfect. If something's not cooked the right way, we'll speak our mind. Our need for control is similar. We both always want to be the leader, but it doesn't work that way. That's why we often get in fights. Fighting. That's another one. We're both tough and don't give up. When we start beating on each other, there's no way the fight's going to end. Often someone else has to break us up. But we forgive each other easily. That's strange. We both had a rough start and were treated badly. Although it's incredibly hard to forgive those who've hurt us in the past, we both forgive each other and our family members remarkably easily. Our emotions. We're almost identical when it comes to emotions. We don't show emotions through facial expression very often. Maybe it was due to being hurt at such a young age. But people learn to see how we express our feelings.

Nobody said anything to Michael today. Not one boy welcomed him. I wish someone would tell him to be their friend. I feel weird having all these friends and he only has me. His face stayed solemn all morning as if he was sad about something. I ask him now why he was like that.

"I don't know. Maybe I just miss the old school." He shrugs it off. He doesn't want to talk but I keep asking.

"Are you sure there's nothing wrong? Normally I can tell, but this time I can't." I ask.

"Fine. I miss Max and Isabel. Okay. There you go. Now you know. Could you stop pestering me?" Michael pushes me away and puts down his head. I'm filled with dismay. It's okay that he misses Max and Isabel, but I'm his sister. Shouldn't he at least be happy he's here with me? I feel a tinge of jealousy. I look at him, but his eyes are looking at the grass. He's trying to ignore me as if he's mad or something. Why would he be mad? I helped him get out of his stupid foster home. I whip my head the other way, starting to get upset.

"Fine! If you don't want to be with me, then I'll go away!" I get up abruptly and stomp off towards my other friends who are at the swings. I don't look back but I know that he's looking at me with a surprised expression on his face. I've never acted this way around him before and I regret what I've done right away. But my pride takes over and I continue to march over to the swings.

"Hey Tess! You gonna play with us?" Ally asks me, happy that I've joined her.

"Yeah. Whatcha doin?" I respond, trying to sound happy.

"Just swinging. Come on. Here's a swing right next to mine." Ally invites me to swing with her. I hop on the swing and start pedaling. As I get higher, I can see into the far corner where Michael is sitting. He seems so alone, so isolated. No. Don't think about him. He's not even thankful that you helped him out of that foster system. All he wants is his precious Max and Isabel. Well if he wants them, he can have them. "Hey Tess! Let's double date!" Ally interrupts my thinking. I smile at her and start pedaling so that we double date. Soon my thoughts of Michael are in the back of my mind and I'm having great fun with Ally.

Michael's POV

I thought adopted life would be so great. To have a mother and father to call your own, that's supposed to be the best thing in the world. But it's not. At least not for me. The first night I spent in this house, I was scared to death. I was really surprised by how scared I really was, because I've been to so many different foster homes. Why would this one be any different? But it is different. Because it's permanent. I'm never leaving this place. Once they signed the papers, I was now considered 'theirs'. I just hate the feeling of being tossed around like a toy. It's as if I'm a piece of property that can be given over to a pair of parents and all of a sudden belongs to them. Tess told me that's how she felt too. Tess. My sister. It still feels weird to say she's my sister. The only sister I've ever knows is Isabel. Tess is nothing like Isabel. She's strong and durable. She beats up on Kevin all the time. She tries to get me to horse around, but I'm afraid that I'll hurt her. She doesn't know my strength, what I'm capable of. Isabel is so perfect, such a……girl. Tess is a tomboy. I think she's teaching Meghan things already that a girl shouldn't do. Even Kevin has learned a thing or two from her. Especially when it comes to fighting. I'm always so surprised by how much Tess knows about fighting. There's something in her, that alien side of her that loves to kick butt. Sometimes I find my self-backing off from her, fearing she'll go too far and hurt me. Maybe I fear her. I don't know. But that first night I spent in this house, now that was something else. She made me feel so safe. Just the thought of her lying next to me made me feel like nothing could hurt me. It's strange, I know. It should be the other way around, me protecting her. That's why I got mad at her. Because she's always trying to protect me, shield me from everything. I've grown up taking care of my self. I don't need a protector. I started ignoring her and finally I blew up in her face. She walked off towards her own friends, leaving me alone in the schoolyard. It's been 3 days and we haven't talked since. I talked to Max last night and he told me to stop acting like such a wuss. "Just let her do her own thing. Let her feel like she's taking care of you. Maybe that's just her instinct. Maybe, where we come from, she's your older sister or something." Max told me. I got mad at him for saying that. I'm not a wuss. Isabel said "Just be a good brother. She needs you and you need her. Just look at me and Max." I think my pride was talking because I got mad at her too. So now I have no friends. I'm all alone in this world.

Okay, I can do this. Just go up to her and say you're sorry. She'll forgive and we'll be best friends again. That's all that's to it. You can do it Michael, you can do it. Oh no, there she is. She's sitting on her bed, looking like she's trying to be busy or something. I walk into her room and close the door behind me. She looks up at me and then frowns when she sees it's me.

"What are you doing in here?" She asks me, as if I'm some kind of alien. Heh. Good one Guerin. I chuckle to myself.

"I…I just wanted to talk to you." I sit down next to her on her bed. "I'm sorry for acting the way I did. Will you forgive me?" I'm sincere in my apology. She looks at me with an estranged look on her face and then a tear rolls down her eye. Her eyes are swelling up and the skin on her face is turning blotchy. "Tess, is something wrong?" I ask, not knowing what's wrong with her. She shudders as she tries keeping her sobs inside. I put my arm around her and say I'm sorry again.

"I'm sorry too. I'm sorry for taking you away from Max and Isabel. But I just don't know what to do without you." Tess shook as she spoke.

"Don't be sorry. You're the one who took me out of that horrible foster home and put me in this awesome house. I may not love it here yet, but I just need time. You said you needed time when you first came too. I miss Max and Isabel, but it's not like they're gone forever. They're just a little further away. We can still go see them lots. Shhhh. It's okay Tess." I coo my sister, trying to calm her down. I've never seen her like this, so vulnerable. And it scares me.

I asked Sandy if Tess and I could go to Max and Isabel's house after supper and she said yes. Thank God. It's been a week since we've both seen them but it's felt like years. I've never spent longer than a weekend without seeing them. It's after supper now and Tess and I are waiting in the car. Sandy's late as usual. Finally she comes rushing outside and plops herself down in the drivers seat. 

"Okay, you guys ready?" She asks us, panting for air.

"Yup. Let's go." Tess responds energetically. She's excited to see Isabel again. The van starts and we slowly back out of the driveway. The drive takes 10 minutes and soon we pull into another driveway. I can see Max looking out the window with his usual solemn face. Tess sees him and starts waving frantically. A smile breaks across his face. Once the van comes to a complete halt, we both take off our seatbelts and get out quickly. Isabel has already opened the door and is running towards us. I hold out my arms and she welcomes them with all her heart. We embrace each other with a warm hug. I'm beaming with delight. Max walks out calmly, trying not to look like he's overjoyed. Tess sees him and run towards him just like Isabel. The smile on his face only gets bigger and they squeeze each other. I can see Tess' feet lift off the ground as Max practically picks her up while hugging her. That's a happiness I've rarely seen in him.


	5. Chapter 5

8 years later (Tess POV)

"Tess, would you be able to baby-sit Meghan tonight?" Mom asks me. I look at her and give a painful sigh. I have nothing up tonight, so there's no excuse.

"Sure mom. Where are you going?" I ask even though I don't really care.

"Dad and I are going out to dinner with some friends. We'll leave at 5:30 and be back around 12. Is that fine with you?" She asks me.

"Yup." I say and then go into my room.

Mom and Dad left a few hours ago and now I'm watching Castaway with Meghan. Kevin is at a friend's house for a sleepover and Michael is on a date with Isabel. Meghan starts getting restless and is starting to move around on the couch.

"Meghan, will you stay still please?" I ask politely.

"I'm hungry." She tells me in a whiney voice.

"Well make something."

"Like what?"

"Make some popcorn."

"Okay." Meghan gets up and walks into the kitchen. I go back to watching the movie when a few minutes later I hear a scream coming from the kitchen. I jump up from the couch and run towards the kitchen. When I reach the kitchen, I see her lying on the ground, wincing in pain.

"Meghan! What's wrong? Are you okay?" I ask frantically while checking her body for any burns or cuts.

"My back. It hurts. Something hit me in my back." She cries. I lift up her shirt to take a look at her small back. My eyes widen at the sight. Her back is burnt black with blood coming out of a few cuts that cut deep into the skin. I feel like puking at the sight, but I tell my self to keep my act together.

"It's okay, Meg. You're going to be fine." I say, trying to calm her down. She's almost screaming with the pain. I run to the phone and dial Max's number. The phone rings twice and then he picks up. "Max, it's Tess." I say.

"Oh, hi Tess. What's up?" He says in a leisurely tone.

"It's my sister Meg. She's hurt real bad and I don't think it's human. You've got to come over." I'm almost crying as I'm telling him. I'm so scared to loose my sister.

"Don't worry, I'll be there right away." He responds and hangs up the phone. I put down the receiver and then bend down to Meghan to comfort her. She's still crying and I pull her into my arms.

"Sshhh. It's gonna be okay, Meg. Max is coming. He'll help you. You're going to be all right. Just hang on for a minute. Sshhh, I'm here." I try comforting her and it seems to work. About five minutes pass and then I see Max walking through the kitchen door. "Okay Meghan. I want you to lie on your stomach so Max can see your back." I help her lie down. Max bends down and lifts up her shirt. He's a little taken back by the sight of her black back but then puts his hand on her back. She winces and shouts in agony when she feels his hand. He has a pained look in his eyes as he's healing my sister. I can tell he's receiving her pain. I look over to Meghan's back and see the skin turning healthy again and the blood going back where it came from. Soon, he pulls his hand away and fall to the floor. Meghan gives a big sigh of relief. I smile as I put my hand on her cheek. I look over at Max, who's getting up from the floor.

"She's alright now." He tells me while he breathes deep.

"Thank you so much. You don't know how much this means to me. You saved my sister." I give him a thankful hug.

"Your welcome." He says and smiles at Meghan. I bend down and pick her up and hold her tight. She scared me to death.

"Thank God you're alright." I'm still in tears and so is she. I put her down and she gives Max a tight squeeze. He hugs her back.

"Thank you Max." She says as she squeezes him.

"Any thing for you, Meghan. Do you feel okay?" He asks with concern.

"I'm fine. But…how did you do that? I mean, how did you heal me?" Meghan is totally blown away at how Max healed her. Max looks at me, worried. "Don't worry, I'll tell her later." I say so as not to worry him. "Do you want to stay for a while?" I ask.

"Oh, um I don't know. My parents don't really know I'm here. But…" He tries coming up with a lame excuse.

"You have to stay! At least for a little while. Watch the rest of Castaway with us. Please?" Meghan begs him. I can tell she's made a bond with Max already. Max agrees and we all watch the rest of the movie.

The next evening

I'm just about to shut off my lamp when Meghan opens the door. I smile at her and put down my book.

"Hey Meg. What's up?" I ask her. She walks in and closes the door behind her. I open up my blanket and she climbs in next to me.

"I wanted to ask you about last night. About Max." Her eyes are filled with confusion as she thinks back to the other night. I shift in the bed, getting uncomfortable.

"Meghan, there are some things about me that you don't understand. You've seen me do things that you never thought were possible. You don't remember because you were too young." I start telling her.

"What kinds of things?" She's still completely confused.

"When you were three years old, Michael and I were left in charge when mom and dad went to some friends house. Kevin had gone off to his friend's house, so it was just us three in the house. Now, me being the tomboy I was and Michael being the control freak he is, we were fighting in the living room because I wanted to do one thing and he wanted to do another. And when I say fighting, I mean serious fighting. We were furious with each other and were determined to hurt each other." Meghan is giggling by now. She knows how mad Michael and I get sometimes. I continue. "We both had pinned each other down to the floor a couple times by the time we started getting tired. But we were still dead mad at each other……Now I'm going to tell you something you're not going to believe. You have to promise not to tell anyone. No one, not even mom or dad. Not even Kevin. Promise?" She nods energetically, wanting me to get on with the story. "So I decided to create a fire ball and hurl it at him. I made a little ball of fire in my hand and through it right at his head." I create one so she can see what I'm talking about. Meghan gasps. "But before it could hit him, he put up his hand and started repelling it back towards me. I had to repel it towards him so it wouldn't hit me. Our strengths were almost equal, so it wasn't going anywhere. Eventually we got tired and one of us let down our guard, I can't remember who. The fireball flew towards the couch where you were sitting watching us. It hit the couch and it blew up. I ran to get you off the couch while Michael put out the fire with his mind. That time, we almost got you killed. We learned our lesson and haven't fought that bad since. Do you understand so far?" I ask my poor little sister.

"Uh…I guess so. I don't know." I can tell she's getting a little scared.

"It's okay to be frightened Meg. I've lived with this my whole life. You see, I can do immeasurable things. Like break things and put them back together all with my mind. I can move things without touching them. Does this scare you? Because I don't want you to be scared. I'm still your big sister you've always known. I'm no different than before. You understand?" I want to make it clear that I'm still the same person. For some odd reason, when people find out new things about people, they all of a sudden think that that person is completely different.

"I always knew you were different. I just didn't know how." She's trying to comprehend everything. "Why don't you tell mom and dad?"

"Well…it's kind of too late now. Michael and I are in our teens already. We don't want to scare mom and dad." I explain, hoping she understands.

"I'm not scared. Why would they be?"

"Grown ups think differently than kids do. When they find out that someone is really different, they get scared."

"But mom and dad…"

"Meghan. I'm not telling mom and dad. Trust me, I've thought about it a billion times. You have to promise me you'll keep this a secret." I'm serious now, she can tell.

"Pinky swear!" She holds out her pinky and I grab it with mine.

"Pinky swear." I look at her and a smile. "Thanks Meg."


	6. Chapter 6

Dear Diary,

It's been two months since the incident with Meghan and nothing out of the ordinary has happened since. That is, except for the fact that Max asked me out on a date the week after he saved Meghan. I was flattered and said yes immediately. I phoned Liz right away and told her the exciting news. She was so excited for me, even though I knew she had a slight crush on Max. But I know she's going to get over it. She's human. Max and I are destiny. After that first date, we went out about twice every week and when we didn't go out, we went to each other's house on those other days. Mom says we spend too much time together, but we can't help it. We know we're going to marry each other, so we spend as much time together as possible. If it weren't for the fact that we're 15 years old, we'd be married already and on our way back to where ever we came from. I know we're going to find our way home one-day. If only we could read that book that Max found in the pod chamber.  
Tess

I set down my diary, which I haven't written in for months, and get up from my bed. I walk over to the mirror to see what I look like. Ugh! I look hideous! That's easy to fix. I just slide my hand over my face and all my make up is perfectly in place. I hear the door bell ring and Michael answers it.

"Hey Tess! Max is here!" Michael yells up the stairs. I come running down the stairs to greet Max. He smiles at me and gives me a light kiss. We don't like showing our full affection in front of Michael, for fear he might put up some protective big-brother fit. Then again, he has to be careful with Isabel around Max too. I put my shoes on and we walk out the door. Tonight we've decided to go to the Crashdown.

When we enter the restaurant, we walk over to our regular booth. Liz comes over to take our order.

"Hey guys. What can I get you tonight?" She asks.

"Hey Liz. Um, I think I'll have some Asteroid Pie and a Cherry Coke." Max responds. Liz looks at me.

"I'll have the same. Thanks." I say and she leaves. Now I turn to Max and give him my full attention. "So how was school today?"

"Eh, not great. Kinda sucked actually. Why weren't you there today?" Max asks me.

"Oh. I'm sorry I didn't call you before hand, but I didn't have time. Kevin got sick this morning and Mom was at work. So I had to drive him to the hospital myself. I had to do all the paper work for my mom and then I had to stay with Kevin to wait for the doctor to check him out. Meanwhile, I had to phone my Aunt Lisa to take Meghan to school. So that took up the morning and a bit into the afternoon." I explain. 

"Is your brother okay?" Max asked in concern.

"He'll be fine. He has a very mild case of pneumonia and he has to stay in the hospital for probably a week or two. It's not life threatening, so I'm not worried." I say and Max sighs with relief. I find it so sweet that he cares so much for my family. Liz walks up to us with two asteroid pies and two cherry cokes.

"Here you go." She says and goes to serve another table. We start digging into our pies. I look up towards the door and see this man who looks vaguely familiar. He looks at me with a cold stare. I quickly turn my eyes to Max. He sees me blush and asks me what's wrong.

"Oh nothing." I say, not knowing what to tell him. The man comes over to our table. "Hi. Can we help you?" I say politely.

"As a matter of fact, you can. Come with me." He talks with a stone cold voice. Max and I look at each other in doubt and decide to follow him. We get up and follow him outside and into the alley.

"Who are you?" Max asks.

"My name is Nasedo. I was supposed to meet you when you came out of your pods, but you were gone already." The man said.

"How do you know us?" I ask, sort of freaked out by this guy.

"I was your father in your previous life, on Antar. When you, your husband King Zan, his sister Princess Vilandra, and her husband General Rath were sent to earth to be re-created, I was sent with you to protect you. I've been following you ever since you emerged from the pods." The man says to me.

"You're my father?" I ask in disbelief. This man may be our only way home.

"Yes, Ava. Through out your whole life on earth, I've wanted to tell you who I was, but I couldn't. I had to let you live a normal life on earth. But now you're all old enough to know the truth about yourselves." My father tells me. I hesitate to hug him, but push myself forward. He welcomes me with a warm embrace. After a few seconds I pull back.

"My name is Ava?" I ask.

"Yes. You were a Queen on Antar and Max was our King. His name was Zan then." My father tells me and then turns to Max.

"Max, you have such a large responsibility waiting for you on Antar. A man called Kivar took over Antar and has turned it into a slave race. Antar is a disgrace to the Five Planets Alliance and they're considering breaking their alliance with Antar. If that would happen, then Antar would be completely vulnerable to all those who attack it." Father tells Max, who is trying as hard as he can to take all this in.

"I can't believe this. How can I be a king? I'm only 15." Max says in disbelief.

"Here, take my hands." Father tells the both of us and we obey. Suddenly, I'm transferred into a dark universe. I'm traveling fast and fly past a beautiful galaxy. Soon, I enter this planet and am taken to this palace. I see a woman who looks kind of like me. She must be my former self. She's crying beside a body that looks like Max. Next to the body lies another body who looks like Michael. I swear I see Isabel crying by his side. But it's not her, it's too old to be her. Then an old man approaches 'Isabel' and puts his hand on her forehead. She starts screaming and then collapses. The woman who looks like me runs over to the old man and starts throwing all these fire and ice balls at him. But it's no use, he has a force shield up. She uses up all her strength and then falls to the ground crying. He old man puts down his shield and then does the same to her as he did to 'Isabel'. She falls down to the ground. I'm horrified at the sight. I can feel her pain and her sorrow as her husband was killed. It's as if it all happened to me. I turn around to my father and see him crying. "That was how you died. Kivar killed you all and then took over Antar. You tried everything you could to stop him, but he was too strong for you." 

"If he killed us then, why can't he kill us again. We're no different than we were back then." Max says.

"No, you're different. You're younger, which means your powers are stronger and fresher. Kivar has grown old, so he is weaker. He was already old when he killed you and now he's on the brink of death. I've come to tell you that you can go back. You just have to make sure that when he dies, no one else takes the place of the King. You are rightfully King, you'll get your throne right away." Father says.

"How are we supposed to get there? And what about our families? I can't leave my family." I say. I've become so close to my parents and siblings. I don't want to leave them now.

"Ava, they aren't your real parents. I'm your real father. Rath is your real brother. The rest of your family is on Antar. This family on earth is only your host. They've provided you with wonderful hospitality, but now it's time to leave. That's the same with you, Zan. Your mother is waiting for you on Antar. You'll always have Lonnie." It's still hard for us to take in. Max and I take a few minutes to think it over by ourselves. Then Max tells Nasedo…

"Okay. We'll do it." Max says with confidence. "It's going to be okay, Tess. We're going to be together the whole time. There's nothing to worry about." Max tries to assure me that this is the right decision. Now we just have to tell Isabel and Michael.

-

-

-

"What! How can that be possible!" Isabel exclaimed after hearing the news from Max. "Well it just is. You're a princess. Personally, I'm not that surprised. I mean, you act like one here already so it won't be that hard to adjust." Max said as a matter of factly. Isabel smiled knowing what he said was true. "How are we going to tell mom and dad?" Isabel asked.

"I'm not quite sure yet. I was thinking that we shouldn't tell them."

"What? No. We have to tell them. What else can we say?"

"I don't know. I just think that they'll freak out. How would you react if your children told you that they're part of a royal family on a far away planet and they have to go back to save their people and you'll probably never see them again? I think you'd have a nervous break down."

"You do have a point. But we have to tell them something."

"Maybe we don't."

"What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that maybe we can fake an accident. A fatal accident."

"You mean…so they think we're dead?"

"Yeah." Max lay back on the bed thinking hard. "Hmmm…now how are we going to die?"

"Max! Don't talk like that! I don't like talking about how we're going to 'kill' ourselves."

"Sorry, but we do have to think of a way to fake our deaths."

"Why don't we get murdered… No, that would be too traumatizing for mom and dad. How bout we…nope, that wouldn't work either. Oh I know! A car accident! That'll work, right?" Isabel suggested.

"I don't know. It's kind of unoriginal." Max shrugged.

"It doesn't need to be original. A car accident is the simplest kind of death there is…I think." Isabel said.

"I guess we could get Michael to blow up the car with 'us' in it. We'll just create dummies that look exactly like us."

"Can we do that?"

"Yeah. I know how."

"And when did you learn how to do this?"

"I don't know. A long time ago. Who cares, Isabel? Let's go talk to Michael and Tess." They both walked out the door.


	7. Chapter 7

Tess POV

Max and Isabel told Michael and me the plan and we all agreed it was a good idea. We decided that we would leave for our distant home the next week. Well, that week has passed and our departure is tonight. I'm scared out of my mind for what lies ahead of me. My parents have noticed that Michael and I are spending way more time with Max and Isabel. I don't think they're very suspicious, just wondering. Michael and I are going to leave a video saying goodbye. It's too hard for me to say goodbye in person. Right now, Michael is setting up the camera. The rest of the family is down stairs, eating supper. Michael and I finished early and excused us from the table.

"It's ready. Come over here and sit down." Michael directs me and I sit down on a chair in front of the camera. He points the remote at the camera and presses rec. Then he starts speaking. "Mom, Dad, we have something to tell you. You're not going to understand everything that's going to happen, but you don't need to either."

"We love you both so much. I can still remember the very first day you guys adopted me. It was one of the scariest days of my life. But it turned out being the best day. You have always thought of me as your daughter and I thank you so much for your love. I love you so much." I'm starting to tear up. Michael puts his arm around me.

"Even though you won't see us anymore, you'll still feel us in your hearts. This world…it's so wonderful. And when you look into the universe, you can see that it's even more marvelous. You've always known that I have a love for the stars, so when you think of me, just look into the stars and you'll see me there." Michael tries not to get too emotional, but I can tell he's on the verge of breaking down.

"Please…don't ever forget us. This is the best life I've ever lived and I hope my next one will be even better. Kevin, you're the best little brother a girl could ask for. You take care of Meghan for me, okay? And Meghan…" I stop for a moment to catch my breath, tears are falling down my face. "Meghan, you're always gonna be the prettiest girl in the world. I know that every guy in school is gonna be asking you out on dates, but listen to this…Only pick the sincere, kind, and generous guys. I'll always be looking down on you from the stars." I wink with my wet eye. "I love you." Those are the last words I say.

"I love you." Michael says and then stops the video. He takes out the tape and labels it 'Michael and Tess Farewell' and places it on the bed. We walk downstairs solemnly and into the dining room. Michael quickly rubs his eyes before entering the room.

"Mom, Michael and I are going to Isabel's for a bit. We'll be back before curfew." I inform her.

"Oh. Okay. That's fine. Have a good time. Be back by 10:30, okay." She says as if it's nothing. I come over to her and give her a big, warm hug. She hugs me back, a little startled. "Is everything okay, Tess?" She's concerned.

"Yeah. I just love you so much Mom." Tears are falling down my cheek as I walk over to dad and give him a hug too. "I love you too Dad." As Michael and I are walking out, I blow a kiss to Meghan and Kevin. They catch it and put it in their pockets. I chuckle when they do that. I wink at Meghan and she winks back at me. Michael has to pull me out of the house or else I won't leave. I put my arm around his waste and he puts his arm around my shoulder to comfort me.

"I know it's hard Tess. But we did the right thing." Michael tells me as we get into his car.

"Yeah. I know." I don't say much. We drive to Max's house and pick them up. Then we drive to the rock where our pods lie. Where the granolith is. Nasedo is waiting just outside the 'door'.

"Hello everybody. You all ready?" He asks us. We all nod apprehensively. "Come on. We need to take care of your car first." We all walk over to Michael's car and see people who look exactly like us in the four seats. Michael holds out his hand and with his mind, he pushes the car over the cliff. We watch it as it tumbles down to the bottom, consumed in flames. There go our lives. I look at Nasedo and he gives me a comforting hug. He knows it hurts. We walk inside the granolith and the door closes. We all place our hands on the energy cone and are instantly placed inside the cone. Suddenly everything starts to shake and we're suddenly shoot into space. As I look out into the open universe, I think to myself. 'I'm finally going home. To where I truly belong... But is it my real home? Do I have family there? Well…as long as Michael is here, I'm with family. Max and Isabel are family too. I have my father and soon I'll see my mother and other brothers and sisters. Yeah. I'm going home. My true home.'

The End


End file.
